Car-coupling



(No Model.)

S. WALTERS.

OAR COUPLING.

No. 544,492. Patented Aug. 13,1895.

WITNESSES: @komlm Wm ATTORN EYS.

UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE.

SAMUEL WALTERS, OF WARREN, PENNSYLVANIA.

CAR-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 544,492, dated August 13, 1895. Application filed January 23, 1895- Serial No. 535,917. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern: i Be it known that I, SAMUEL WALTERS, of Warren, in the county of Warren, in the State of Pennsylvania, have invented new and useful Improvements in Oar-Couplings, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to car-couplings of the class known as hook-couplers, and particularly to means for adapting them to be used when the bumpers or draw-bars are of equal or unequal height, and in either case to prevent their uncoupling accidentally by the jumping of one of the cars.

My object is to provide a car-coupling with means to accomplish this object, comprising a link slot or slots in the swinging hook of each member and mounting in or upon each body an arm or dog which is adapted to engage with said slot, or one of said slots, when the couplers are of unequal height, or when of equal height to engage with the hook of the other coupler, and by such engagement to lock the couplers in their relative coupled positions, whereby they cannot become uncoupled from any cause, either by the jumping of a car or its derailment, and also supporting the end of a car in case of a broken truck, and to keep the draw-heads from falling on the track in case of pulling out of pocket or when broken back of the head, said lock being applied to the body of the coupler or set into a mortise therein.

My invention consists in the several novel features of construction and operation hereinat'ter described, and which are specifically set forth in the claim hereunto annexed.

It is constructed as follows, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a top plan of a pair of couplers coupled and locked. Fig. 2 is a top plan of one coupler detached. Fig. 3 is a front ele- Vation thereof. Fig. 4 is a side elevation showing two couplers coupled and locked at different heights. Fig.5 is a sectional detail of part of a head and a sliding locking-bolt mounted therein. Fig. 6 is a plan perspective of one of said bolts detached.

A is a draw-bar upon which the couplerhead a is secured, concaved substantially as shown, and in one arm of which the swinging hook- I) is pivoted, beingprovided with an.

deemed necessary. In or upon each head a locking-bolt e is mounted, as in a mortise it, having its outer end projecting into the concavity of the head, and It is a spring engaging with it, so that it is yielding under pressure.

Each bolt projects diagonally from the outer side of the coupling inwardly, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and do not extend in a line with the coupling. The projecting end of each bolt is beveled away, as shown in Fig. 6, so as to stand at such an angle that when the headsruntogethershould eitherbolt be struck by any part of the opposite head the bolt will be forced backward into its socket. The bolts are placed diagonally, so that they will operate when one coupler is higher than the other. WVhen couplers of unequal heights come together, one of the bolts must be wedged back by the hook b of the other head, and this bolt is held back until it can snap out into the notch d in the opposite head, when it serves to help support that head in place and prevent it from dropping upon the track in caseit should pull loose from its car. These bolts are so located that when the draw bars and heads are of equal height and are coupled they will inwardly project over and under the hooks of each opposite head and lock said heads together in alignment and hold them in such positions. When the drawbars vary slightly in height, the hook of one head will engage with the bolt in the other, crowd it back, and hold it there until a little vertical movement of either car will permit said bolts to be thrown out to engage with the hooks. Where there is considerable difference in the normal height of said draw-bars, then said bolts will either engage directly with said hooks projecting into the link-slots, or a little vertical movement of a car will raise one head, so that they can snap out onto said slots.

Sev

In any case said bolts will lock the couplers in' their engagement, whatever be their relative v'ertical posit-ions, and'absolutely prevent their uncoupling by any change of height of one draw-bar with relation to the other arising from or created by any cause for any interval of time, thereby steadying the cars, making them more unitary, andin case of a broken axle or truck under one car the coupling will carry that end of the other car and prevent its falling down onto the track, causing a smashup; Said bolts will also look said heads together vertically while the pins lock said hooks in their longitudinal or coupling engagement.

It Will be seen that in many cases the arrangement of the draw bars and heads will'be such that said bolts may be rigid.

Having describedmy invention, what I claim,and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- l In a car coupling, the heads, the hooks pivoted therein, and provided with the recesses d; and the pins for engaging the hooks; combined with spring actuated bolts placed in sockets'in 'the'l'ower sides of the heads and extending diagonally to the openings in the front ends of the heads; the projecting end of each bolt being beveled away and adapted to catch in the recess of the opposing head, substantially as described. a

In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand on this 18thday of January, 1895.

SAMUEL WALTERS. In presence of- G. B. ROBERTS, JOSEPH A. SOHOFIELD. 

